Ghost
by Alien Altered
Summary: Gibbs discovers Kate's still alive! What happens when Kate is torn between her two lives? And how much has changed? Is there still a chance for Tony and Kate? Ziva is there. And so is Jen.
1. Suprise

**Disclaimer – **I own nothing (although I wish I did).

Leroy Jethro Gibbs strode into 'R & R Psychologist'. It had taken over an hour to get here, the traffic was crappy, and some cocky teen had made him spill his coffee; needless to say, Gibbs was pissed! But he was here to talk to a suspects shrink.

He marched up to reception, and gruffly said "Leroy Jethro Gibbs, NCIS, here instead of Jennifer Sheppard. I'm here to see Alana James." The receptionist asked him to take a seat and Alana would be with him soon. Gibbs stood with his back to the wall, surveying his surroundings; he glanced at the magazines but doubted that anything interesting or informative was contained in its glossy pages. A couple minutes later the receptionist caught his eye, smiled, and said "Ms James will see you now. Go down the hall, it's the fourth door on your right." Gibbs didn't return the smile as he stalked off down the hall. Gibbs opened the door and stepped through. As he did so Ms Alana James turned to face him; she had long, blonde hair tied in a pony tail, and blue eyes, but there was no mistaking that face – it was Kate.

"Kate?" Gibbs questioned. Ms James had gone ghostly white and was visibly trembling, as she whispered "Gibbs?"

Kate and Gibbs spent a half hour catching up, and even Gibbs's anger was forgotten in the excitement. Abby would go crazy when she saw Kate. Finally Gibbs asked if Kate wanted to come back to NCIS headquarters with him. "Ah, yeh! But I need to pick up Maddi first." Kate replied. She saw the question in Gibbs eyes before he asked "my daughter." Saying Gibbs was shocked was an understatement. Kate hadn't mentioned having a daughter, and she had no ring…

"Is that alright?" Kate asked, almost hesitantly. Gibbs just nodded his reply.

When they reached the school Kate ran inside and told the office clerk that Maddi had a doctors' appointment.

"So, since when have I had a doctors' appointment?" asked Maddi as they walked to the car park.

"You don't," replied Kate, "My old boss…"

"Gibbs?!" asked Maddi

"Yeah, anyhow, he came to work today, and I mean my secrets kinda out now, so I'm going back to NCIS to see everyone," Kate reached out a hand to cover Maddi's mouth and continued "and I thought even if you didn't want to come you could have the rest of the day off." With that Kate released her hand.

"I'm coming!" Maddi almost squealed. "Oh my god, this is so cool. I finally get to meet the team. This is awesome…"

When Maddi and Kate climbed into the car, Gibbs was shocked to see that Maddi was a 14 year old Goth; with long black hair, tight black jeans, a red t-shirt, and black eyeliner around eyes far older than the person they occupied.

As they drove to NCIS Gibbs was informed that Maddi was not Kate's biological daughter, but rather one that had been placed with her when Kate entered the Witness Protection Program. And she seemed just as excited about going to NCIS, as Kate was.


	2. Ghost

**Disclaimer – **I own nothing - that would cost too much.

The elevator doors opened with a 'ding' and Tony glanced from his paperwork to see who it was; a cute, blond, in jeans and a casual shirt, caught Tony's eyes, but she had her face turned away from him. "McGee! Go left, go left!" Abby yelled. She and McGee had been playing games on McGee's computer for the last 20 minutes as they waited for Gibbs to get back; who had called an 'important' team meeting. Everyone was there; Ziva, McGee, Abby, Ducky, even Palmer and Jen. Finally the pretty blond turned her head to face Tony, and as soon as he saw who it was, Tony fell out of his chair and onto the floor. "TONY!" Abby squealed, "Are you oka…" But the question died on Abby's lips as she saw the blond walk into the bull pen. Abby's voice became hoarse, as she whispered "Oh my god! Kate???!"

"Hey Abs." Kate replied, with a shrug of her shoulders, as she stretched out her arms in an open hug. Abby ran into the hug with another squeal and Kate was almost knocked backwards from the impact. "But…how? I mean…I saw…you…you're…alive…here…what?..."

Kate cut of the rambling Abby "I don't know, I don't remember much. I remember laughing and then waking up in a hospital and being told that 'Kate Todd' was dead. Then I was given my new story, and new life."

Whilst Kate was saying this, McGee approached her and gave her a huge hug, which she more that happily returned. "Hey Tim."

"So, you're real?" asked Tony with a thousand different emotions obvious on his face.

"Yeah. I'm real." Kate replied with a quiet laugh. That was all Tony needed; he was up on his feet with Kate in his arms in a second. There were tears streaming down his face, and he was probably holding Kate so tight he was hurting her, but he didn't really care. Kate was alive, Kate was safe, she was in his arms, and Tony couldn't remember ever being so happy. Everyone was just standing there watching Tony holding Kate as they both cried silently. And after a minute Gibbs felt he should divert the attention from the two special agents. "Um, everyone, this is Maddi…Kate's daughter." Everyone turned to look at Gibbs and Maddi. Looks of confusion and shock went everywhere. And Kate stepped from Tony's embrace to explain. But Maddi beat her to it, "Hi, I'm Madison, but no one calls me that, so it's Maddi. I'm not Kate's biological daughter; I was placed with her when she went into WPP. I'm 14, and…that's about it."

Everyone was quiet, until Ducky stepped forward "Hello, darling, I'm Ducky, It's lovely to meet you."

"Thanks Duck-Man," everyone was surprised by that, "um, I mean Ducky."

"And Caitlyn dear, great to see you again." Ducky said as he embraced Kate.

Ziva coughed, uncomfortably, and Ducky broke away from Kate. Once again Gibbs did introductions, "Kate this is Officer Ziva David, Ziva, this is Special Agent Kate Todd..."

"Or Ms Alana James – depending on where you see me." Kate replied as she shook hands with Ziva.

"And this is Madam Director Jenifer Sheppard."

"Nice to meet you Madam Director." Kate greeted. Kate wasn't blind, she could see the longing in the way Gibbs looked at the director. Something there was a bit hinky…

"Ditto, I've heard a lot about you." Replied Jen, as she glanced at Tony, who was still staring at Kate with each emotion he felt shown clearly.

The NCIS team (minus Ziva and Jen) spoke long into the night. And Kate was surprised to learn just how much the team had changed, and what had happened to them, and vice-versa. But the biggest shock and disappointment came when Kate found out that Tony was in love. And not just another one of his 'I found the love of my life' loves. It seemed that this time it was true. He was in a committed relationship. Everyone slept in the bullpen that night. Well, almost everyone. Tony lay awake, listening to the sounds of his co-workers sleeping, and wondering what he was going to do. He had loved Kate, he'd finally admitted that, but did he still? How much had Kate really changed? Would she come back to work? And if she did, would she be Kate Todd, or Alana James? Was she hiding anything? What hadn't she told them about? Tony finally summed up his thoughts in three simple words which he whispered more to himself than anyone else "Geez. I'm screwed."

_Her hands were pinned above her head, as he yelled at her, his words made no sense! She couldn't run! She couldn't do anything! She was trapped by this stranger... His hands travelled down her body as he patted her down for weapons, the look in his eyes, the way he touched her, it almost made her tremble, little did she know that this man would also cause her to 'die'... The knock on her door interrupted her off-key singing. She opened the door to see two solemn faced police standing before her. The elder of the two began "We're sorry to inform you that there has been a car accident, Jim was involved, and there were no survivors..."_ "NO!!!" Kate screamed as she woke up with a start. Within a second Tony was by her side "Are you okay?" Kate was shaking, and she had tears running down her face. Maddi sat down beside Kate and hugged her, for she understood. Everyone was crowded around Kate, each worried for her, but she didn't want their sympathy; they didn't understand. None of them knew what she had been through; none of them could imagine her pain. So Kate rejected their offers of help, she lied that she was fine, it had just been a nightmare, because the only other thing was tell the truth, and that hurt too much.


	3. Anxiety

**Disclaimer – **I own nothing cries

"So, what are we doing? I mean, food wise?" asked Maddi, as she walked into her mum's room, towelling her hair dry.

"Pizza." Kate replied distractedly, as she looked through her clothes. "Hey, have you seen my bright blue shirt?"

"Ahhh, yeh. It's in the dryer." Answered Maddi. They were getting ready for tonight. The whole team was coming over to watch DVDs and catch up some more. And the whole team meant everyone, including Palmer, Ziva and Jen. Kate had only just returned from work, and was nervous about what her friends would think of her house. Although Maddi was sure that it had more to do with what Kate's friends would think of their life. Kate and Maddi spent the next half hour rushing to get ready and make the house look, at least a little, clean. But five minutes before everyone was due to arrive; Kate remembered that she had left the dessert in her work freezer. When the door bell rang to announce the first guest, Kate still wasn't back from picking up the dessert. Maddi opened the door and let DiNozzo in. Tony followed Maddi into the lounge room, where he spotted the cupboard full of DVD's.

"Whoah!" exclaimed Tony, "You must be a pretty big movie buff."

"What? Oh no, most of those are Mum's. She's pretty into movies and stuff, which is kind of completely opposite to the other things she likes to do…She's a weird one." Maddi laughed. Tony was more than confused; Kate a movie buff? That didn't seem right. And most of the DVDs didn't appear to be chic flicks. "Alright, where's the stack of chic flicks hidden?" Tony asked.

"Chic flicks? What ev. They just remind us of how lame our lives are, well, when either of us is single, the few that we do have are down the bottom though. Hey, do you mind if I just go down the street? I'll only be a minute. I need to get some homework that I missed." Tony replied with an absent nod, and flick of his hand, as he noticed a stack of Sketch Pads. He walked towards them, and grabbed the one from the top. As he flicked through the pictures he noticed a few of the same man. He looked athletic, and built. And a lot of detail had been put into the drawing. Suddenly Tony began to feel that he was invading Kate's privacy, and quickly put the book back. But as he stood up again, he saw a photo with the man from the drawings. He had dark brown hair, and bright green eyes. And was standing in front of a fountain, with one arm wrapped around Kate's waist, and the other draped over Maddi's shoulders. They all looked so happy. A knock at the door startled Tony, and he opened the door, with the photo still in his hands. "Oh, Tony! You're here already." Stated a surprised Kate, as she walked into the kitchen Tony followed her and waited for her to put the ice cream in the freezer before he asked Kate about the photo. "So, who's the guy?"

"What guy?" asked Kate; obviously oblivious to the photo Tony held. Tony simply lifted the photograph and pointed.

"Oh." Said Kate, as a sad smile graced her lips, "that's my, um, ex-husband."

"Ex-husband? You were married? When? What happened?"

"Yeah. Last year. We'd been dating for six months when he proposed." Kate closed her eyes and smiled as she remembered the moment that he had asked 'Marry me?' Tony felt himself smile as he saw Kate smiling. Suddenly Kate's smile disappeared and she coughed awkwardly. "A drunk driver hit his car, Jim died instantaneity. It's supposed to be some kind of comfort that he died instantly, but really, what difference does it make?" Tony stood staring at Kate. They'd both moved on, and they'd both had their hearts broken. But at least Jeanne wasn't dead. Plus Kate had done nothing to deserve such pain. With Jeanne and him, it had all been his fault - well his and Jens…

Kate was becoming uncomfortable with Tony's gaze being on her, and when the doorbell rang Kate silently thanked God. She felt bad keeping something from Tony, but the time was not right for her to tell, and she wasn't ready. Besides she still had a few more days until she had no choice but to tell. Tony trailed after Kate – still in a kind of daze. Tony stood noiseless as Kate opened the door only to be engulfed in a massive hug. After Kate and the mystery man had separated, Mystery Man spoke up, "Found this one walking down the street. But I don't believe for one second that this kid actually wants to do the homework she supposedly went to get." Mystery Man just glanced suspiciously at Maddi as she shoved the sheet of work into his face. Kate and Maddi both started at the same time… "You'd better believe it"… "I'm NOT a kid!!!" Tony couldn't help but laugh. The looks that both girls sent him was enough to tell him that these girls were not to be messed with. Now it was Mystery Mans turn to laugh, as spoke up again "Easy there girls. Just coz there's new meat, don't mean you gotta eat him," he turned to Tony and stuck out his hand, "I'm John. I work with this big bugger." He said with a glance towards Kate, who just rolled her eyes. Tony met the other mans hand with his own "Tony DiNozzo. I used to."


	4. Brandon

**Disclaimer – **It's true, I don't own them. Well, except Brandon, but I guess my imagination owns him.

"What about that time when you and Officer David had to go undercover as married assassins'? But then it turned out that the people you were spying on were FBI. Plus you accidentally flashed…" Abby broke out in a fit of laughter "…you accidentally flashed…the director!" Tony, Jen, and even Gibbs flushed bright red at the memory. But Kate just laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Well, I guess I can see where all Lana…_Kate's _stories come from. I have to admit some of the time I did think she was bullshitting, but now…" John turned to Kate seriously, "…I believe you." Just as Kate was going to roll her eyes again the doorbell rang. Maddi jumped up to answer, only to return a few minutes later, looking rather anxious "Ahh, Mum, it's Brandon." A few confused looks passed through the group as Kate stood and walked out without an explanation.

Brandon's lips captured Kate's in a short but amazing kiss. He smiled at her as he handed her a bunch of flowers. But when Kate wouldn't look him in the eye Brandon knew something was wrong. Before Brandon even had a chance to ask Kate started to talk "I have to tell you something."

During the five minutes that it took for Kate to finally explain what had happened (so that it made sense), Brandon was trying to work out how to feel. At first he was angry, but it wasn't Kate's fault, and besides, he could never stay angry with her. The excitement on Kate's face was evident, and Brandon could see how desperately Kate wanted his approval, so he smiled, and cut her off mid-babbling-sentence, "So do I get to meet them or not???" Kate looked at him suspiciously, "Please…" he added, sarcastically. Kate's smile grew bigger as she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the lounge room. "Hey everyone, I want you to meet Brandon…"


	5. BombShells

**Disclaimer-** I wish I did, but I own no one but the characters I created.

Brandon was a big hit. Everyone loved him. Abby loved his deep voice, his sharp blue eyes, his buff body, and his black bed-hair. McGee loved his knowledge about computers and technology. Even Gibbs was impressed with him; with his manners, and marine upbringing. Although Kate thought that Tony would like him, Tony seemed to be uncannily quiet. Maybe Tony didn't like Brandon – maybe he hated him. As much as Kate could pretend Tony's opinion didn't matter to her, it did – he did.

However it was quite the opposite. Tony loved Brandon (not literally), however if Tony were gay he would probably like a guy like Brandon. He was into sports and movies, and seemed nice enough. The thing that really bugged Tony was how well he was accepted. McGee seemed to look up to him. Abby seemed in awe of him. Gibbs already respected him. Jen was really interested in his job at the WPP. Even Ziva had a hint of something kind in her eyes. But what really cut Tony was the way that Kate was looking at Brandon. The admiration in her eyes. If only Kate would look at him like that…

A few hours later and Abby was passed out on McGee's lap- which of course he was more than happy about. Palmer had left hours ago to see Agent Lee.

Ducky was entertaining Jen and Brandon with another of his stories from his youth. However Kate seemed distracted; lost in thought. John, on the other hand, was paying very close attention to the dynamics of the team. He was a profiler, and the things he was noticing were very interesting. For example; the fleeting looks that Gibbs and Jen kept exchanging – you could tell they had a past, and they couldn't let it go. He could tell that Kate was contemplating how to break the news about Adam to everyone. But Tony, he was the easiest to read. The confusion lingering in his eyes, the pain, but what was most obvious was what he was trying to hide the most.

The next morning when Kate woke up she looked around groggily. Only Abby and McGee were left asleep in the room. Kate stumbled to her feet and headed towards the kitchen where she could hear giggling and smell delicious aromas. Kate stood at the doorway to the kitchen, watching as Tony baked pancakes and made her daughter laugh as hardly anyone had since Jim. Kate smiled and for a few minutes she let her mind wonder 'what if?'

"Kate!" Tony mock-squealed. "They're not quite waffles, but…" he trailed off as he picked up a pancake with the egg-lifter and skilfully threw it into the air before catching it again. Maddi wolf-whistled in approval. Kate just laughed. According to Maddi, Brandon and John had had to leave for work, and everyone else had just gone.

"So Kate, are you still into the whole 'healthy' thing?" Tony asked, half seriously. Kate only snorted in reply, and grabbed a handful of grapes which she threw at Tony. This started a full food fight between Tony and Kate.

Tony chased Kate around the kitchen with a can of whipped cream. All this commotion had woken up McGee and Abby, who were standing just inside the kitchen in hysterics. Maddi sat at the kitchen island smiling at the scene before her. This seemed so natural to Tony and Kate. Kate was smiling, the smile that only their family could bring out. Only when all four of them –Kate, Jim, Adam, and Maddi- had been together had Kate smiled this way, she looked so free. It seemed like when Kate was around Tony she forgot about the monsters that usually smothered her.

The doorbell saved Kate from a jar of peanut butter, and she dashed off to answer it while Tony moved back to his, now burnt, pancake. Everyone could overhear Kate's anxious voice from the doorway, and Tony, McGee, and Abby were massively confused.

"But you said you'd take him 'til Monday."

"What is all over you?"

"Is he alright? Why are you bringing him back early?"

"Is that cream?"

"Ah, yeah. Okay, well I guess I'll just have to tell them earlier than planned…"

"Lana! What is going on? Why are you so anxious about getting Adam back? Who will you have to tell? And why on earth are you covered in cream?"

Kate laughed lightly before telling Jim's mother Claire what had happened over the past few days.

Maddi ran down the hall after Kate had finished her explanation and hugged her grandma before handing Kate a towel and taking Adam from her. After Claire left Kate wiped some of the cream from her face. And together their small family entered the kitchen together. "Guys, there's something else I have to tell you, you might want to sit down…" None of them sat down and all looked between Kate, Maddi and the baby suspiciously. Kate sighed and began her story. "Okay, well this is Adam. He's my son. My _biological_ son." Abby squealed, McGee's eyes widened, and Tony looked betrayed.

After a long explanation and answering lots of Abby's questions, Kate was happy to see that her friends were actually excited about Adam. Abby was sitting on the lounge room floor playing with him as McGee watched on. "Anything else you haven't told me? Any other children? Got a couple golden retrievers, by any chance?" Tony's voice was hostile and getting louder with each word. "What other secrets are you keeping from us?!!!!!!

"What haven't I told you? What other secrets? Well let's see. My cover story is that I ran from my abusive husband. The way that people looked at me when I first arrived, like I was some slut. Do you know what it is like to not only have a new name, but a new life, a new family? Have you ever had to change your personality and your looks? Abandon an entire life?! What else haven't I told you?!! I haven't told you about Russel Kindle. Or what it's like to be told that your husband is dead. How about attending his funeral? You don't know shit about my life or me, so don't presume that you can just march into it and control me. Fuck you!" And with that said Kate stormed off. And Tony just watched as she climbed the stairs and shut herself in what he guesses was her bedroom. And he hated himself. He hated himself more than when Jeanne left, or when Kate had 'died' because this time he could have done something, this time it was ALL his fault. Tony contemplated going after Kate, but decided against it when he saw a pile of photo albums. Maybe he didn't know about Kate's new life, but he wanted to.

"Mum…Common, open up." Maddi called through her mother's door.

"Not now, Maddi." Came Kate's muffled reply. Maddi sighed and within 30 seconds was inside Kate's room. "You always seem to forget I'm pro at that." Maddi said with a ghost of a smile. Then she saw what Kate was looking at. "Mum, he didn't know." Kate was holding a picture that Maddi had once drawn. In one box was Maddi, crouched on the ground covering her eyes, while monsters from her past surrounded her. In the next box was Kate, covering her ears, while her own set of phantoms crowded around her. The last box was Kate holding Adam, with one arm around Maddi, whilst Jim hugged them all. The monsters were further away in this picture, and the four people in the middle had learnt to smile, despite their fears.

Tony stared at the picture of Kate on her wedding day. She looked amazing. Completely breathtaking. And happy. The wedding looked great too. It was a small wedding, and everyone looked so happy. So Kate had finally got the church wedding she had dreamed of, Tony only wished he had been there. She was amazing. A soft crying interrupted Tony's thoughts and he quickly went to the lounge room where Abby was trying to soothe Adam. Tony lifted the baby from her arms gently, without really thinking, and started talking to him quietly.

"Hey buddy. What's going on? You alright? I know Abby can seem a bit scary sometimes…"

"Hey," Abby called "It's not my fault – he hit his head!"

"…But she's pretty cool. So you hit your head eh? I've done that. Bit silly aren't we." Tony continued to talk to Adam while McGee and Abby stared on in amazement.

Kate, Maddi and Adam spent the whole weekend with Tony, Abby, McGee, Gibbs, Ducky, Jen, and Ziva. Ziva now understood how much the death of Kate had affected the team and its members. She understood the hostility. And she got it - the team is still a team, but before Kate died they were a family.

As the end of Sunday neared Tony asked the question he'd been burning to know. "So Kate, when are you coming back to NCIS?"

"Um, I'm not."


	6. Conflict

**Disclaimer – **I own nothing, but maybe my creativity. Don't sue, I have no money.

**Previously: **As the end of Sunday neared Tony asked the question he'd been burning to know. "So Kate, when are you coming back to NCIS?"

"Um, I'm not."

Everyone stood silent – it was as if everyone was just waiting for Kate to yell out 'Just kidding- so got you guys.' But she didn't. Instead it was Abby who yelled "WHAT?!! What do you mean you're not coming back? You have to!! Kate, PLEASE!"

"Caitlin, my dear, I must agree with Abigail. I implore you, come back."

"Mum, what are you on? You have to go back!"

"Agent Todd! I'm giving you back your job. Take it, that's an order."

"We'd be honoured to have you rejoin our agency."

Kate looked around. The faces of her old team seemed sincere – but that was just it, they were her old team. She had a new team, a new family, new friends, she had a new life. She couldn't just abandon her life again. This time she had kids to protect. Kate and Lana were no longer very different, but Lana was better at thinking with her head, Kate was better with her heart. And she was Lana.

"I can't. I have a new life, and I refuse to just walk away this time. I have a great job, great friends, an amazing family; I'm not just losing all that again!"

"Great! You've moved on! What about us?! Just because you can forget all about us doesn't mean we can forget about you! Don't you get it yet?!! You're special! People care about you, Kate!"

"You just said it – people care about **Kate Todd.** I'm not Kate Todd anymore, I'm Alana James."

"So what? You have a different name! You're still Kate. You still use the imitation Gibbs glare. You still draw incredibly well. You still have that mischievous twinkle in your eyes. You still joke, but can be deadly serious. I don't care that you have different colour eyes, or blond hair rather than brown, what does it matter that your clothes are tighter, your makeup thicker, you're suddenly a movie buff, and a mother – YOU'RE STILL KATE!!!!!"

"Don't you get it yet Tony? Kate Todd is DEAD. How many times did you visit my grave in the past year? How many times did you even mention a thing about me? Did you ever look at Ziva and say Kate? It's **Ziva's **desk. It's still the team without me. I bet you look through Ziva's stuff, like you used to mine. Honestly, Tony, how often have you even thought of Kate? The truth is that you've all forgotten, you've all moved on, and Kate is dead."

"NO! GODDAMN IT NO! Don't _you_ get it yet? Kate Todd is ALIVE! Even if you're not her anymore, she's inside you. Why did you get married in a church? Because **KATE** would have done that. Why did you have a food fight with me the other day? Because me and **KATE** use to do that. True it's still _a _team, but it's not _the _team. No one has ever forgotten. Abby has the picture you drew of her as a bat inside her desk. Gibbs has one of your sketch books in his. McGee still has e-mails that you sent him before you 'died', and your PDA. Ducky still always leaves a spare chair at the table when we go out for lunch, as if he's waiting for you to join. Don't _you_ get it? We can move on a bit, but we _can't _forget." Tony ended softer than he had started, and his voice was shaking. Kate matched his tone. "And what about you?" Kate suddenly seemed to remember the rest of the team was there, "I'll still see you guys all the time. It's only an hour drive. What's the difference?"

Tony looked at Kate in disgust "The difference? The difference is that you're not just there. I can't just have a food fight with out driving an hour. I can't overhear your conversations, or go through your stuff. I can't see you everyday. And that thought drives me crazy. You've finally come back; I can't just let you leave again." Tony paused for a moment, to gauge Kate's reaction, "You know I still have that wet t-shirt photo, I could always use that as black-mail."

"Pigs, I'll be working with pigs again!" Kate smiled slightly at Abby before nodding at Gibbs. She was back.


	7. Feelings

**Disclaimer – **I don't own them (well, besides the ones I do).

**Note – **Thanks ncisabbylover for my first review. This is the first fanfic I've ever written so it's nice to know it's okay.

- Also I just made up rule 27.

It hade been a few months since Kate had resumed her job at NCIS. She had accepted back her old name, been reunited with her old family and friends, and moved so that she was only 20 minutes from work in bad traffic. Most of Lana's friends hadn't been too upset; in fact most seemed sadder that she was moving. Maddi was thrilled. She had hated her old school. Filled with pretentious snobs who believed that the world was all princesses and knights, rather than dragons and witches. Maybe at this school there would be people actually worth knowing. Kate had moved only a few streets from an old school friend whose husband was a cop, so she understood Kate's job and was more than happy to baby-sit when needed. Although Kate was more than sure that Maddi would be fine with Adam, it was always good to know there was someone else around. The bullpen had been rearranged so that another desk could be fitted in. Kate got her old desk back, and Ziva got a new one, which they fitted between Kate and Gibbs desks. Brandon and Kate had broken up around a month after Kate had returned because he had been relocated to South Africa. Kate had been heart-broken and it had hurt Tony to see her in so much pain over a guy. If he ever got Kate, he would never do a thing like that, but until he found a magic wand, he was stuck trying to cheer her up by teasing her.

"Timmy, it's been three months. Tony is such an idiot. Why doesn't he just kiss her already? He's so obviously in love with her and we all know he's not so good with the words, but one goddamn kiss might tell her how he feels – that's supposed to be his area of expertise." McGee just nodded in agreement. But to tell the truth, he was lost in thought. Maybe Tony was too stupid to do anything about how he felt, but McGee wasn't. As Abby walked past him to collect some results from her maspectrometer, McGee grabbed her around the waist and kissed her. Geez, he'd missed doing this. Abby was thinking the exact same thing.

Tony watched as Kate walked in. The blond hair, blue eyes and makeup were gone. But the tight clothes still remained. Tony needed to tell her how he felt. He opened his mouth but all that came out was "Got a hot date tonight, Kate?" "Actually, yeah. See you tomorrow, Tony" And with that she smiled and walked back to the elevator, leaving Tony to another night of dreams about her.

The phone was ringing, persistently, so loud. Tony grumbled as he reached over and felt around for his phone. "Hello?"

"Hello, sorry to bother you at this hour but is Mr Anthony DiNozzo?"

"Yeah, who the hell are you?"

"I'm calling from Bethesda Naval Hospital. Do you know one Caitlin Todd?" This woke Tony up instantly. "Of course. What happened? Is she alright? Please tell me she's okay."

"She was involved in a bit of an accident. Aside from the broken leg she appears fine, however we would like to keep her overnight for observation. But since you are her emergency contact we had to call you anyway. Sorry to interrupt."

"I'll be there in 10 minutes."

"You don't have to."

"I'll be there in 9." And with that Tony rolled out of bed threw some clothes on and drove in a way that would make Gibbs proud.

Tony found out which room Kate was in and after a quick call to Gibbs he dashed down the corridor. The hospital was insanely light for 2:30 in the morning. Tony finally reached Kate's room and quietly opened the door. He stepped in silently only to discover the bed was empty. "Hey Tony, you didn't have to come." Tony looked over to where the voice came from, and sure enough, there was Kate, staring out the window. When he made no response she turned around. Tony couldn't take it anymore. She was always so strong, he wanted to show her he was there for her, he cared, she wasn't alone, and unlike all the other bastards he would never leave her. He rushed forwards and kissed her. He pulled back slowly, expecting an elbow in his ribs, or a slap, even a kick. But nothing came. He opened his eyes and looked at Kate in confusion. Kate was looking at Tony, Tony was looking at Kate, but neither knew what they were looking for. Suddenly Kate closed the distance between them and kissed Tony. All the passion and longing and frustration raged between them as they stood making out in the hospital both had once been afraid of losing the other. After a few minutes of the frantic kisses, Tony slowed down their pace. He loved Kate, why rush? He wanted her to feel his love because he was too scared to say it. He moved his hands from her hair to her lower back. And removed his lips from hers. He began kissing her neck. All the way up, and then along her jawbone. He was losing it, he could feel all control evaporating; he'd wanted this for so long. He swapped sides and went the same route up her neck before taking her earlobe in his mouth. She moaned quietly and he lost it even more. He needed her lips. He quickly clasped their lips together once more. He was in heaven. This was how he wanted to spend his life, with Kate. Tony jumped away from Kate when he felt a hand connect sharply with his head. "Boss, we were…er…we were just, um, talking, yeh, talking."

"Rule number 9 – always be specific when you lie."

"Look, Boss, it was me, don't fire Kate."

"Which rule did you both forget tonight?"

"Rule 12." Kate and Tony both supplied.

"Rule 27." Gibbs saw Kate and DiNozzo's confusion. "Now, which is that?"

"Always, um, never…"

"Some rules are allowed to be broken." And with that he walked from the room smiling. Thinking of a country named Paris which had once seemed like a world away.

As Tony watched his Boss's retreating back he thought about what Ducky had once said. Gibbs had once been like Tony, but Tony couldn't think that they still were alike. Tony had seen how Gibbs had flirted with Kate on Air Force One. And Kate and Jen were similar. Maybe Ducky had been right. But all that mattered now was applying rule 27 to rule 12. So he turned around and resumed from where he had been interrupted.


	8. Abby

**Disclaimer – **Don't sue, please, I have no money and the characters which aren't mine I don't own.

Thanks for the reviews!

Tony and Kate were so caught up in each other that they failed to notice the door open and someone walk in, until "Oh My God! Oh. My. God!!!!" squealed Abby as she saw her best friends engaging in more than friendly acts. "You two finally…YAY! Do you know how long I've waited for this??? But no you were both to God Damn oblivious to even accept how you felt. But now you have, and I'm interrupting something very personal so bye." And with that Abby turned and walked back into the hall. Kate and Tony exchanged glances before diving into another kiss. "Oh yeh, and Kate," Abby said, popping her head in again, "I expect ALL details tomorrow." Kate was going to roll her eyes but caught sight of Tony's eyes, dark with passion, and forgot all about that little plan. All that mattered was them and now. Everything else could wait. Kate wondered what Abby would do with this new information, but abandoned all logical thought when Tony slipped his hands up her shirt.

"Oh my God, Timmy," Abby said into her phone as she walked from the hospital, "You'll never guess what I just saw."

Tony lay in the hospital bed holding Kate, just watching as she slept, listening to her steady breathing. He was frustrated, but sure he had made the right decision in stopping Kate and himself before they got too carried away. Kate was still injured, plus being in a public place meant anyone could just walk in, normally Tony wouldn't care, but with Kate, he couldn't quite explain it, but it was different. Tony also couldn't stand Kate waking up tomorrow hating him. But mainly, Tony wanted to prove to her that this was different, it wasn't a one night stand– it was more; she was more.

Kate was content. In her dream Tony and she were having a snow ball fight, when suddenly she fell, but Tony was there to catch her. And then he was kissing her, declaring his love for her. Slowly Kate began to wake up. She could feel Tony's muscled arms surrounding her as he kissed the back of her neck. He changed the pressure and tempo as he went and Kate instantly wanted more. She had never woken so happy or aroused. Kate could defiantly see why he had so many girlfriends, he was an amazing kisser. Kate gave a moments thought to the truth that she was now one of those many girls. But she didn't care. 'Why not enjoy it while I can' Kate thought to herself. And with that settled Kate rolled over to capture Tony's lips in the best good-morning kiss either had experienced.

"Wake-up! Wake-up!" Abby screamed as she dashed into Kate's room with a slightly flustered McGee shaking his head behind her, "Abby, you've got to drink less caf-pow!" McGee supplied before turning his attention to Kate and Tony with a not-so-small smirk across his face, "Sleep well?"

Kate glared at McGee, and then looked over to Abby, who was grinning madly. What had Abby told McGee??? "So McGeek, is that coffin getting anymore comfy? Or do you still need the lights out to get into it?" Tony asked. McGee blushed slightly before turning his attention to Kate.

The morning went very slowly for Kate. Tony, Abby, and Tim had all been called into work, and Kate couldn't leave until the test results were in. But being hit by a car can't really cause any major damage or they would have noticed it, so these tests were completely pointless. She'd tried pledging her case to a nurse, but the nurse just smiled sympathetically and continued with her job.

Maddi dropped by with Adam for a few hours, until Abby showed up. Maddi thought she should leave them alone for a while, so she and Adam went home. As soon as the door was closed, Abby started, "Spill."

"Spill what?" Kate asked as innocently as she could.

"You know what!" Abby squealed.

"No idea, what you're on about Abs."

"Bull Shit. I'm talking about you – Miss, I used to protect the president, and Tony – Movie extraordinaire. I'm talking about the very compromising position I found you two in last night. I'm talking about how you two idiots have finally hooked up! And hopefully admitted you're in love with each other.

"Abby. Tony's not in love with me and I'm not in love with Tony."

"That's crap and you know it."

"Fine. Maybe I love him a little. But he doesn't love me." Abby just rolled her eyes.


	9. Photo

I own nothing. I know it's short but it's sort of just a filler. And I'm sorry I haven't been writing. I've been camping and then visiting family, and it's just been kind of hectic.

Kate was finally being released from the hospital, and she had agreed to let Tony drive her home. Maddi and Aaron were staying at Johns for the weekend so Kate was dreading going home to an empty house. On the ride home neither Tony nor Kate knew what to say. As Tony was about to speak Kate turned up the radio, and began to sing along to the song. Tony laughed at her but shut up when she glared at him. She kept glaring so he raised one hand in surrender.

"Do you want some coffee or something?" Kate asked as she closed the door behind her. Tony shook his head as he walked over to a framed photo. He smiled at the photo; it showed everyone as they were, or how they had been, before Kate 'died'. Ducky was telling a bored McGee a story, Kate was glaring at a grinning Tony, and Gibbs was standing by with a small smile. Tony didn't notice Kate was next to him until she said "I love that photo." Tony smiled a half smile.

"I love you."


	10. Elevate

I still own nothing.

Tony and Kate rode the elevator to the bullpen. The metal cubical was silent, except for the sounds of their soft kisses. Whilst everyone probably already knew about them, thanks to Abby, Tony and Kate had decided to try and keep their relationship quiet, and out of the office. The lift arrived with a clink and the two special agents separated, fixing their clothes they walked into the bullpen. Ziva merely glanced up at them before returning to whatever she was doing. Things had been weird since Kate had returned. Ziva and Kate both felt uncomfortable around each other, and the banter between Ziva and Tony only happened when Kate wasn't around. Gibbs strode into the bullpen. "We've got a case. Gas the truck." He said as he threw the keys to Tony. Kate called Ducky while Ziva called McGee.

By the end of the day Kate was exhausted. Sure, it had been an open and closed case, but it had been hard. It had involved a baby; the father had gone into a rage and killed his wife and child. And Tony's jokes and banter had been all that had stopped her from breaking down. So when Tony opened his arms to Kate in the elevator, she settled right into them and let his arms hold her. Kate would never have thought Tony could be like this. Show's how wrong she could be - guess she wasn't as good a profiler as she believed. Neither said anything as they waited for the elevator to arrive at the car park. Without words being exchanged, Tony took Kate's keys from her bag and drove them both to her place. And when Kate woke from her nightmare in the middle of the night, Tony was there to comfort her. He held her tight, and watched her, watched over her.

I know it's short, and the chapters are all everywhere, jumping about, missing huge chunks of time, so I'm sorry. Hopefully the next chapter will be longer (and better).


End file.
